I suppose it must be admitted that yesterday was a bit of a sad day, or at least it was rather disappointing. Since our last visit here about five years ago, John and I had intentions to return to Oxford so we could have a beer in the Eagle and Child pub. When we first briefly visited, I was still abstaining from alcohol; but since then it had been a huge wish of mine to have a beer in the very pub Tolkien once drank in. A few weeks ago, when John suggested returning to Oxford for a couple of days, I thought it was a great idea.

We traveled up by train yesterday morning. The journey itself went smoothly enough, and by late morning we found ourselves among the dreaming spires of Oxford. The problem was, Oxford didn’t seem to be playing ball: the more we explored, the more museums we found shut or inaccessible, or the more footpaths we found unnavigable. While we had a good afternoon exploring a few of the parks, to be honest it began to get a little wearing.

The greatest disappointment of all, however, came in the early evening when we eventually decided to make our way to the Eagle And Child. It was just a short walk from the city centre, and I was really looking forward to getting some Inkling vibes: a pint or two in my favourite author’s favourite pub would be so awesome! However, the closer we got to the place, the clearer it became that nothing was happening there: it was empty and boarded up, and looked like it had been for a couple of years.

It was a sad, draining sight. There would be no Tolkien fan worship, no drinking where he drank. It seemed like we had gone all that way for a boarded up door, and it made me feel very low indeed. With nothing to tell us why it had shut or whether there was any chance of it ever reopening, there was nothing else for us to do but go and find our hotel room.